Temperature-controller for automobile-engines.



C. D. MILLER.

TEMPERATURE CONTROLLER FOR AUTOMOBILE ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 2. 1915.-

1,251,264:. Patented Dec. 25,1917.

A TTORNE YS.

COSBY D. MILLER, OF ST. JOSEPH, MISSOURI.

TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLER FOR AUTOMOBILE-ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 25, 1917.

Application filed January 2, 1915. Serial No. ,185.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, COSBY D. MILLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at St. Joseph, in the county of Buchanan and State of Missouri. have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Temperature- Controllers for Automobile Engines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawing.

My invention relates to improvements in temperature controllers for automobile engines of the internal combustion water cooled type, and consists in the combination with the radiator of dampers preferably lo cated forwardly thereof for controlling the passage of air through the radiator, and a thermostat located in the rear of the radiator in the path of the air passing therethrough, connected with a shutter to open and close it by variations in the temperature of the air coming through the radiator. The invention further consists in the construction, arrangement and combination of parts as more fully hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the controller, certain parts being broken away to avoid obscurity. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line X X, seen in Fig. 1, looking downward.

Fig. 3 is a front view. Figs. 4 and 5 are sections, similar to Fig. 2. showing two of the other various forms and situations of the ventilator frame.

In the form of my invention, seen in Figs, 1. 2 and 3 frame 1 is preferably formed of s -eet metal, and is secured on the front of radiator 2, by bolts and nuts 1.

A. plurality of preferably sheet metal shutters 3, are provided with pivots 3, oscillatably mounted in said frame. The longitudinal edges of said shutters are adapted to overlap upon each other, for closing the shutter, as seen in Fig. 3. Each one of said shutters has a crank projection 3" formed therewith, which are pivotally connected at 4;, with bar 4:. Said bar has arm 4 secured thereon and extended rearward through radiator 2, between the pipes thereof.

The rear end of said arm is pivotally connected with the front end of lever 5, by link 6. The intermediate portion is pivotally mounted in thermostat yoke 7, while the rear end of said lever is actuated to move downward by spring 3, the tension of which, is adjusted by thumbscrew 9, screwed through said yoke. Said screw is secured in its adjustments by lock nut 9. The upper end of spring 8, is held in position by the lower end portion of screw 9, while the lower end of said spring is held by the upper portion of bearing piece 10, the intermediate portion of which is secured in the rear end of lever 5. The lower extremity of said bearing piece rests upon the center of the upper surface of thermostat 11, the center of the bottom of which, is secured to thermostat holder 12.

Said holder is provided with clamp 13, by which it is secured on water circulating pipe 14, which latter connects the bottom of radiator 2 with engine 15.

Said thermostat may be of disk form as shown, or be of any other air cooled form, adapted to operate lever 5, and be suitably supported and secured on any available, fixed object, instead of pipe 14, without departing from the spirit of my invention, which I reserve the right to do.

While I have shown and described the frame 1 as being detachably secured on the front of the radiator 2, it is evident that said frame could be formed integral with said radiator or, in some instances, the frame could be placed behind the radiator; such inte rally formed frames being shown in Figs. 4 and 5. In Fig. 4, the frame 1 is formed with flanges integral with the radiator 2 at the front edges thereof; while in Fig. 5 the frame 1 is formed with flanges integral with the radiator 2'; all of the other parts being the same in their construction and operation as the ones shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

The operation of the device is as follows: If the temperature of the air in the rear of the radiator-that space being ordinarily inclosed by the hood of the automobileis below the desired point, say below 150 F, the expansive fluid in the thermostat will be condensed, permitting the spring 8 to expand, pressing down the rear end of the lever 5, raising its forward end and thereby, through the connections shown, closing the shutters. This shuts ofi any material flow of air through the radiator and tends to maintain the temperature of the air about the engine at the desired point.

In starting, it the automobile is constructed as is customary, with a carburetor below the hood, the air taken into the carbureter will be at a comparatively high.

temperature, if the engine had been pre viously operated, and thus assist in more readily starting the engine. After the-engine has run a sufliciently long time to increase the temperature of the air in the space in the rear of the radiator, the thermostatic fluid will expand and raise the rear end of the lever 5, lower its forward end and thus gradually open the shutters to a degree depending upon the temperature of the air passing through the radiator.

In very cold weather, the shutters might never open entirely, as the air passing through the radiator might never reach a tem erature sufficient to cause the thermostatic action to efiect this result. In warmer weather the air passing through the radiator will be at a higher temperature and the shutters will be permanently opened. in any event, as soon as the temperature of the air in the rear of the radiator reached a low enough point the spring 8 would close the shutters and thus tend to maintain the air about the engine and the radiator at the desired temperature.

1 preferably arrange the shutters in the front of the radiator and of sufficient extent to cover the entire space, so that not only is air about the engine maintained at the desired temperature but the radiator itself will be inclosed within this warm air space.

1 preferably arrange the parts so that the shutters cannot be moved beyond the fully opened position. This may be done by having the lower end of the bar 4. come into contact with the bottom of the frame 1 in such fully opened position of the shutter.

I am aware that heretofore it has been proposed to control shutters arranged in the front of the radiator of an automobile by means of a thermostat located in the Watercirculating system, but I do not deem such a construction to be within the scope of my invention. My invention is an improvement over such apparatus, as the shutters are closed much more quickly in cold weather, thus maintaining the temperature of the air in the space beneath the hood; whereas with such water-controlled thermostat the entire water cooling system, or the greater part of it, has to be lowered in tem perature before the shutters operate. Another objection is that it is much more enpensive to apply and much more ditiicult to maintain because it requires packed joints through which the thermostat acts.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A. temperature controller, comprising adjacent edges of said shutters being adapted to lap upon each other; cranks formed on said shutters; a rod pivotally connected with said cranks, one of the ends of said rod being adapted to be stopped by said frame for limiting oscillation of said shutters in one direction when the latter are fully open; an arm secured on said rod; a lever having one of its ends link connected with the extended end of said arm; a bearing. piece having 1ts central portion secured in.

the other end of said lever while its end portions extend thereabove and below; a thermostat holder; holder securing means whereby said holder is secured on a fixed object; a yoke secured on and extending over said holder; pivotal mounting means in said yoke whereon the intermediate portion of said lever is pivotally mounted; an air operated thermostat secured on said holder with the center of its top against the lower end of said bearing piece; a screw screwed through the center of said yoke; a spring having its lower end mounted on the upper end portion of said bearing piece while its upper end is held in place by the lower end portion of said screw; and a lock nut on said screw for securing the latter in its various adjustments.

2. In a temperature controller of the class described, a frame adapted to permit free passage of air therethrough and through the radiator of an automobile, a plurality of flat shutters oscillatably mounted in said frame the adjacent edges of said shutters being adapted to lap upon each other for limiting oscillation of said shutters when they are in closed position; cranks formed on said shutters; a rod pivotally connected with said cranks, one of theends of said rod being adapted to be stopped by said frame when said shutters are oscillated to their full opening; an air operated thermostat so situated that the air which passes between said shutters flows ed to the influence of the temperature of the cooling water in passing through the radiator, for controlling the flow of the air into and through the radiator.

4. The combination with an. engine and a radiator therefor, of shutters acting in their closed position to retain the heated air back of the shutters and surrounding the engine, and a thermostatic control for actuating said shutters, said thermostatic control being located Where it is subjected to the heated air retained by the shutters in their closed position and where it is subjected to the temperature of the air passing through the radiator in the open position of the shutters.

5. An attachment for automobiles having an engine and hood, comprising a water tor, said radiator adapted to be positioned at the front end of the hood, movable ventilating shutters for regulating the passage of air into the radiator, and a thermostatic control for said shutters arranged rearwardly of the radiator and controlled by the temperature of the air surrounding the engine and which has been subjected to the temperature of the radiator. 1

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

COSBY D.

Witnesses:

FRANK A. Home, MA'ITHIEW B. HINTON. 

